Sun Ra, who has been reported lost since his European tour in June 1969, lands on a new planet in outer space with his crew, known as "the Arkestra", and decides to settle African Americans on this planet. The medium of transportation he chooses for this resettlement is music. He travels back in time and returns to the Chicago strip club where he used to play piano with the name "Sonny Ray" in 1943, where he confronts the Overseer (Ray Johnson), a pimp -overlord, and they agree on a game of cards for the fate of the Black race. In present time (the early 1970s), Ra disembarks from his spaceship in Oakland and tries to spread word of his plans. He meets with young African Americans at an Oakland youth centre and opens an "Outer Space Employment Agency" to recruit people eager to move to the planet. He also agrees with Jimmy Fey (Christopher Brooks) — an employee of the Overseer — to arrange radio interviews, a record album, and eventually a concert that will help him dictate his message. As the card game between Ra and the Overseer is played, and it becomes clear that the Overseer is winning, Ra's plans to recruit local black youth for his new utopian space colony suffer setbacks. Many of them are suspicious of Ra, accusing him of faking his outer-spatial origin as a gimmick to boost his record sales. He is kidnapped by a team of white NASA scientists who threaten him with violence, desperate to learn the secrets to his space-travel technology. As Ra's concert rapidly approaches, he is saved by three local teenagers, who escort him to the music hall just in time. At the concert, as the Arkestra play their signature free jazz, the NASA scientists appear and attempt to assassinate Ra with a pistol. One of the teenagers jumps in front of the bullet, saving Ra's life, and as he is bleeding out on the stage, Sun Ra waves his hand and the teenager, his friends, and Ra himself all disappear from the music hall. One by one, black people across Oakland vanish into thin air and reappear on Ra's spaceship. Jimmy Fey resists leaving Earth on Ra's spaceship, but Ra doesn't let Fey leave; Ra takes Fey's "black parts" with him onto the spaceship, leaving his "white parts" behind on Earth. Fey, now acting white, leaves the Overseer, who loses the duel. As Ra's spaceship launches off into the cosmos and music begins playing, a montage implies that Earth is destroyed in its wake.

Wealthy Texan Big Enos Burdette and his son, Little Enos, frequently bet notable truckers in Atlanta to bootleg 400 cases of Coors beer from Texarkana, Texas, to Atlanta in 28 hours, but all have failed with many being arrested. They find local legend Bo "Bandit" Darville at a truck rodeo at Lakewood Fairgrounds and offer him $80,000 (equivalent to $322,260 in 2024) to take the bet. The Bandit accepts and recruits his friend Cledus "Snowman" Snow and Fred, Cledus' Basset Hound, to drive the truck, while Bandit drives a black 1977 Pontiac Trans Am (Trigger) as a "blocker" to divert attention away from the truck and its illegal cargo. The pair arrives in Texarkana an hour early and load the truck, but as they begin their return journey, Bandit is intercepted by Carrie, a runaway bride who suddenly jumps into his car. Unbeknownst to him, this makes Bandit an indirect target of Sheriff Buford T. Justice, a seasoned Texas lawman whose dimwitted son, Junior, was supposed to marry Carrie. The Justice father and son engage in a high-speed hot pursuit, doggedly chasing Bandit all the way to Georgia to retrieve Carrie and arrest the Bandit. Successive comical mishaps cause the Justice's cruiser to experience increasing damage along the way. Bandit attracts more police attention across Dixie as Cledus barrels toward Atlanta with the contraband beer. They are helped en route by many colorful characters via CB radio. Neither Buford nor any other lawmen know of Cledus's illegal manifest, while Bandit is likewise unaware that Buford is chasing him because of Carrie, whose jumpiness inspires Bandit to give her the CB handle "Frog". Just after re-entering Georgia, Cledus is rescued by Bandit after being stopped by a Georgia State Patrol motorcycle trooper, as state and local police intensely pursue Bandit with roadblocks and a helicopter to track his movement. With 4 mi (6.4 km) remaining, Bandit, discouraged by the unexpected mounting attention, is ready to relent, but Cledus, who initially thought they would fail, takes the lead and smashes through the roadblock at the fairgrounds' main entrance. They reach their destination with ten minutes to spare. However, instead of taking the winnings, Carrie and Bandit accept a double-or-nothing offer from Little Enos: a challenge to run up to Boston and bring back clam chowder in 18 hours. They quickly escape in Big Enos's 1974 Cadillac Eldorado convertible as police flood the racetrack. Buford arrives at the fairgrounds, his cruiser now a barely functioning wreck. When Bandit passes him, he uses his CB to contact Buford, and the pair briefly exchange some mutual respect before Buford demands to know Bandit's whereabouts. Bandit initially directs him to the Burdettes, but he then respectfully gives his real location right behind Buford, who continues his chase, leaving Junior behind, and with more parts falling off his cruiser as he limps off after Bandit.

In the early 1980s, Jaime Escalante becomes a mathematics teacher at James A. Garfield High School in East Los Angeles. Latino students from working-class families have academic achievement far below their grade level. Students Angel and another gangster arrive late and question Escalante's authority. Escalante demonstrates how to multiply numbers using one's fingers and appeals to the students' sense of humor. After class, some gangsters threaten him. After school, he stops the gangsters from fighting. Escalante decides to teach the students algebra. At a meeting, he learns that the school's accreditation is under threat, as test scores are not high enough. He says that students will rise to the level that is expected of them and gives the students a quiz every morning. He instructs his class under the philosophy of ganas. Escalante tells other faculty that he wants to teach the students calculus, seeking to change the school culture to help the students excel in academics. Other teachers ridicule him, as the students have not taken the prerequisites. Escalante states that the students can take the prerequisites over the summer, setting a goal of having the students take Advanced Placement Calculus by their senior year. The students sign up for the prerequisites over the summer. In the fall, he gives them contracts to be signed by the parents; they must come in on Saturdays, show up an hour early to school, and stay until 5pm in order to prepare for the AP Calculus exam. Two weeks before the exam, Escalante teaches an ESL class when he suddenly clutches at his torso in pain, stumbles into the hallway, and falls. Escalante escapes from the hospital and shows up at school to continue teaching. After taking the AP calculus exam, the students head to the beach and celebrate. All 18 students who took the exam pass it. At a meeting to congratulate them, a plaque of appreciation is presented to Escalante. To the dismay of Escalante and the students, the Educational Testing Service (ETS) questions the students' exam scores. Escalante finds an anonymous letter of resignation in his school mail and walks home that evening, as his car has been stolen. Dismayed, he confides in his wife that he regrets having taught calculus because the students did well but nothing changed. Fabiola reassures him, stating that his students appreciate his efforts. Outside, students surprise him by fixing his car. Escalante meets with the investigators from ETS and offers to have the students retake the test. Despite having only one day to prepare, all the students pass, and Escalante demands that the original scores be reinstated. End captions indicate that in the summer of 1982, Escalante's entire class passed AP Calculus and in subsequent years, his program became even more successful.

In Melbourne, Errol Wallace is a financial business consultant whom we meet in the course of his being hired by the board of Durmack, an automotive component manufacturer, where he assesses a large work force redundancy and recommends major layoffs. Balls, a moccasin factory located in the Melbourne suburb of Spotswood, is his next client. Mr. Ball, the owner of the company, is affable and treats his employees benevolently. Wallace on a factory tour finds the conditions wanting with shabbiness, old machinery and the workers lackadaisical. A young worker at Balls, Carey, who is finding his place in the world and life, is asked by Wallace to assist in his review, compiling worker condition and performance information. Carey is reluctant until he learns that Mr. Ball's daughter Cheryl, whom he fancies, is part of the review staff. Wallace learns that there is an instigator in the midst, his colleague Jerry, who leaks the Durmack report, inflating the quantity of sackings as a means to demoralise the union. Kim Barry, a salesman at Balls who also has his sights set on the boss's daughter, shows his ruthlessness and ulterior motives when he comes to Wallace's home one night with a complete set of the company financial records that detail non-existent profit for years and reveal that Ball has been selling off company assets to keep the outfit afloat. Wallace realises that whatever productivity improvements have been implemented are not enough to save the company even with an elimination of workers and yet that is his recommendation. Mr. Ball responds, "It's not just about dollars and cents. It's about dignity, treating people with respect". Wallace's mind set starts to change when his car is vandalised and some Ball workers come to his aid, workers who then start to include him in their off-hours activities. Mr. Ball announces the work force redundancies and Wallace is clearly uncomfortable seeing them, knowing that it was his recommendation that sealed their fate. The union at Durmack capitulates and management celebrates with a party during which Wallace becomes further disenchanted by what he sees as the rash sackings. He then realises that Balls may have a competitive advantage that could potentially make the company profitable. If Balls stop trying to compete on price on a few products, but instead have a very large product range, then all the perceived inefficiencies (old machinery and a large number of highly skilled experienced workers), become opportunities for growth. Carey realises he has feelings for his work mate and friend Wendy and together they climb up onto the roof of the factory and hold hands. In the final shot, they look out over the West Gate Bridge, which opened in 1978 - an ending which deliberately leaves it ambiguous as to when the film is actually set.

Vassili Zaitsev, a replacement soldier of the Red Army, arrives east of the River Volga during the Battle of Stalingrad in 1942. After a dangerous trip across the river into the city, he is forced to join a human wave attack carrying only rifle cartridges. He takes cover during the chaotic battle with Commissar Danilov. With one rifle, Vassili kills five German soldiers before they escape. Red Army commander Nikita Khrushchev asks his subordinates how to improve morale. Danilov recommends inspiring hope rather than punishing in fear and suggests that they revive the army newspaper and publishes heroic tales of Vassili's exploits. Vassili is transferred to the sniper division and becomes friends with Danilov. Both also become romantically interested in Tania Chernova, a private in the local militia. In fear for her safety, Danilov has her transferred to an intelligence unit, ostensibly to make use of her German skills in translating radio intercepts. With Soviet snipers taking an increasing toll on the Germans, Major Erwin König is deployed to kill Vassili and crush Soviet morale. When the Red Army command learns of König's mission after he wipes out Vassili's sniper unit, they dispatch König's former student Koulikov to help Vassili kill him. König, however, outmaneuvers Koulikov and kills him, shaking Vassili's spirits. Danilov finds a boy, Sacha Filipov, who volunteers to act as a double agent by passing König false information about Vassili's whereabouts in exchange for food. Vassili sets a trap for König and manages to wound him with the help of Tania. During a second attempt, Vassili falls asleep, and his sniper log is stolen by a looting German soldier. The German command takes the log as evidence of Vassili's death and plans to send König home, but König does not believe that Vassili is dead. General Friedrich Paulus confiscates König's dog tags to prevent Soviet propaganda from profiting if König is killed and identified. In turn, König gives the general a War Merit Cross that was posthumously awarded to his son, a lieutenant in the 116th Infantry Division who was killed in the early days of the battle. König tells Sacha where he will be next after deducing that the boy is responsible for his being wounded. Tania and Vassili have meanwhile fallen in love. That night, Tania secretly goes to the Soviet barracks and makes love with Vassili. The jealous Danilov disparages Vassili in a letter to his superiors. König spots Tania and Vassili waiting for him at his next ambush spot, confirming his suspicions about Sacha. He then kills the boy and hangs his body to bait Vassili. Vassili vows to kill König and asks Tania and Danilov to evacuate Sacha's mother. Tania is wounded by shrapnel en route to the boats. Thinking she is dead, Danilov regrets his jealousy of Vassili and even his ardor for communist ideals begins to falter. Finding Vassili waiting to ambush König, Danilov removes his helmet and exposes himself to provoke König into shooting him and revealing his own position. Thinking that he has killed Vassili, König goes to inspect the body only to find himself in Vassili's rifle sights. Accepting his fate and removing his cap, König grimly turns to look Vassili in the face before being shot in the head. Two months later, after Stalingrad has been liberated and German forces have surrendered, Vassili finds Tania alive and recovering in a field hospital.

Fifth Avenue socialite Ouisa Kittredge and her art dealer husband Flan are parents of "two at Harvard and a girl at Groton." However, the narrow world inhabited by the Kittredges and their public status as people interested in the arts make them easy prey for Paul. A skillful con-artist, Paul mysteriously appears at their door one night, injured and bleeding, claiming to be a close college friend of their Ivy League kids, as well as the son of Sidney Poitier. Ouisa and Flan are much impressed by Paul's fine taste, keen wit, articulate literary expositions and surprising culinary skill. His appealing facade fades as soon as the Kittredges put him up, lending him money and taking satisfaction in his praise for their posh lifestyle. Paul's scheme continues until, after he brings home a hustler, his actual indigence is revealed. The shocked Kittredges kick him out when it is revealed that they are but the most recent victims of the duplicity with which Paul has charmed his way into many upper-crust homes along the Upper East Side. Paul's schemes become anecdotes which are bantered about at their cocktail parties. In the end, Paul has a profound effect on the many individuals who encounter him, linking them in their shared experience.

Drake is a corrupt and greedy developer who is illegally dumping toxic waste into the mines around the small town of Clear Sky, causing mosquitoes to mutate into giant beasts that attack and kill anything, including humans. A lawman of the town sheriff, Roy Boone, and his reunited love Sarah Crosby, must put a stop to both the pollution and the bugs. The body counts keep rising, which causes the locals to feel that they have to move out of the city. Crosby and environmental inspector Gordon Perry try to find the origin of the waste, but certain people try to prevent them for doing so due to Drake's evil deeds, which involves some hitmen.

In January 1993, Jerry Shepard, guide at a National Science Foundation Antarctic research base, is asked to take UCLA professor Dr. Davis McClaren to Mount Melbourne to find a rare meteorite from Mercury. Since the ice conditions are poor, the best way to the mountain is by dog sled. Shepard and McClaren make it, but are called back to base camp due to an approaching storm. McClaren begs for more time and Shepard gives him half a day. En route back to base, McClaren slips down an embankment, breaking his leg and falling into freezing water. Shepard uses lead dog Maya to carry a rope to McClaren and pulls him out. They battle hypothermia, frostbite, and near- whiteout conditions as the dogs lead them to base. At base, the human crew is immediately evacuated, while the dogs are left behind. Shepard, promised that the pilot will return shortly for the dogs, tightens their collars to ensure they cannot get loose. Because of the harsh weather conditions a rescue cannot be attempted. Back in the United States, Shepard tries to return for the dogs, but no one is willing to finance the expedition. Five months later, Shepard makes one last attempt. McClaren realizing his ingratitude and uses the remainder of his grant money to finance the rescue. They fear there is little chance any of the dogs could have survived so long, but they decide to try anyway. The eight sled dogs – lead dog Maya, Old Jack, Shorty, Dewey, Truman, Shadow, Buck, and the young Max – have been waiting in the freezing conditions for Shepard to return. After a few days without eating, the dogs are prompted into action as a gull flies near, and they all begin to break free, one by one. Old Jack, by now too weak, remains attached. Maya tries to free him, but reluctantly leaves him behind when he shows no sign of wanting to leave. Maya joins the other dogs, and together they catch a few birds, getting their first food in weeks. After nearly two months on their own, the dogs rest on a slope one night under the southern lights. Fascinated by the display, they run about and play until Dewey falls down an incline and is mortally wounded. The team sleeps by his side and Dewey dies overnight. Max loyally stays by him while the others move on. By the time Max heads in their direction, he has lost the pack. Maya leads the team to the Russian base, which is unsecured and full of food, while Max finds his way back to the American base, which is locked up. Setting back out, Max recognizes the embankment the dogs traveled on their way back from Mount Melbourne. While exploring, Max finds a dead orca, but is driven off by a leopard seal nesting inside the body. Nearby, Maya and the team hear Max and join him. Max lures the seal away so the dogs can eat, but it doubles back and bites Maya, leaving her badly injured. In a rage, the five other dogs attack the seal. Overwhelmed, the seal quickly drags itself into the water, after which the dogs feast on the orca. The reunited team continues traveling. Starving, freezing, and exhausted, the injured Maya collapses into the snow. The dogs lie down beside their leader as the snow piles up. They have been on their own for six months. Shepard, meanwhile, has gone to New Zealand looking for a boat to take him to Antarctica. At a bar, he reunites with his friends and they make it to the base. Upon arrival, they are dismayed to find the body of Old Jack, still attached to the chain, and no sign of the other dogs. Then they hear barking and see Max, Shorty, Truman, Shadow, and Buck come over the horizon. After a joyous reunion, Shepard loads the dogs to leave, but Max runs off, leading Shepard to Maya, lying in the snow – weak, but alive. With six of his eight sled dogs, Shepard and his crew head back to civilization, with the last scene showing a memorial for the two fallen dogs, Old Jack and Dewey.

Best friends Dave Goodman, Sam Schecter, and Jeff Davis have spent almost four years at Holden University scamming their way through college. During one exam scam in their final semester, Dave meets Angela Patton and asks her out while writing his phone number on her exam sheet. Ethan Dulles (who calls himself "Cool Ethan"), a nerdy student who is obsessed with Angela, observes Dave and grows jealous. Ethan takes Angela's exam question sheet after she leaves and uses it to blackmail the guys into setting up a successful date for him with Angela. The guys set Ethan up in multiple situations to try to convince Angela to like him, while Dave tells Sam during their research that Angela is no more important to him than any other scam they have pulled. Ethan fails to attract her after frequent confrontations based on his delusional behaviour, immaturity, and flouting of social norms. While trying to convince Angela to go out with Ethan, Dave and Angela develop a mutual attraction. After telling Ethan that he has failed to convince Angela to go out with him, Ethan reveals to Dave that he has been obsessing over Angela for quite some time. He reminds Dave that he still intends to get Dave and his friends expelled if they fail him. Angela and Dave go on an impromptu date after a study session. Ethan finds out, follows, and records them. Dave and Angela share a romantic swim and lovemaking session, which Ethan records. He shows the tape of Dave and Angela making love to Sam and Jeff to establish that Dave intends to keep Angela for himself. Sam and Jeff, unhappy with Dave's dishonesty, hand over their research on Angela. Ethan shows Angela the file, telling her that Dave and his friends were actively stalking her. Dave punches Ethan in the face, but Ethan thinks he won Angela. After a falling-out with everyone, Dave returns to the dorm and admits to Sam and Jeff that he genuinely cares for Angela. After making amends, the guys sabotage Ethan's job interview with a law firm, and, during the final exam, Dave confesses to Angela in front of the whole class about his years-long practice of cheating. Jeff plants an answer key in Ethan's backpack while tipping off the teaching assistant proctoring the exam. The men get expelled, but Dave and Angela get back together, and Sam ends up in a relationship with Angela's roommate, Reanna Cass. Jeff falsifies their diplomas from Holden University after Angela and Reanna graduate. Ethan, miserable that he lost Angela forever and got expelled from college after it was revealed he was stalking her, continues to work his dead-end restaurant job, as he continues to pine for Angela and nurse a hatred for Dave.

Jack Stanfield is chief of security of Landrock Pacific Bank in downtown Seattle. He is visited by a collection agency, claiming he owes $95,000 to their online gambling site. Believing the incident is due to an identity theft, Jack entrusts his colleague Harry Romano to take care of the claim. Jack goes out for a drink with Harry who introduces him to Bill Cox, a potential partner. After they leave, Cox climbs into Jack's car and forces him at gunpoint to drive home. There, Jack finds his wife Beth and his two children unharmed, but under surveillance by Cox's man, Willy. The next morning, Jack is instructed to transfer $10,000 from each of the bank's 10,000 largest depositors – $100 million total – to Cox's offshore accounts. Cox rigs him with a camera and microphone to hinder his ability to ask anyone for help. At Landrock Bank, Cox visits Jack under the alias Bill Redmond, requesting a tour of the bank's security system. On the way back home, Jack attempts to bribe Willy to betray Cox, to no avail. After Willy slipped up (unaware that Jack slipped the camera onto his secretary Janet), Cox kills him. At home, Jack attempts an escape with his family, but is foiled when they discovered Willy's dead body in the car. In retaliation, Cox gives Jack's son Andy a cookie containing nut products, sending him into anaphylactic shock. Cox withholds the treatment, an EpiPen, until Jack acquiesces to their plan. The next day, Cox forces Jack to fire Janet, fearing she is growing suspicious. Jack complies, but it doesn't end well. Jack initiates a wire transfer to send the money to Cox's offshore accounts. Before leaving, Jack uses an employee's camera phone to take a picture of the account information on the screen. Cox then begins covering his tracks. He forces Jack to delete security data and surveillance tapes and use a virus to cripple the building's system into disarray. Returning home, Jack finds the house empty except for Liam, Cox's enforcer. After realizing that Cox never had any intention of letting him and his family live from the beginning, so as to cover up his crimes, Jack overpowers and kills Liam with a heavy glass blender. He calls Harry, but he does not answer. Jack goes to Harry's house to inquire about Cox, but hearing and witnessing the two entering the house, he goes to hide, where he watches Cox killing Harry with his gun that was confiscated earlier. Beth, held at gunpoint, leaves a message suggesting an affair on Harry's answering machine, implicating Jack in his colleague's death. In addition, the $95,000 debt will be considered motive for Jack embezzling the bank's money. Jack turns to Janet and reveals the truth. She agrees to help him retrieve the phone with the picture of Cox's account information. Jack hacks into Cox's Cayman Island accounts and transfers the money away. He calls Cox with Liam's phone and they arrange to free his family in exchange for returning the money. During the conversation, Jack hears the family dog Rusty in the background and realizes he can locate his family by the GPS tracking unit in the dog's collar. Cox's gang ditches the dog during mid-drive, but Jack managed to track them to an abandoned farmhouse. He tells Janet to call 911 and approaches the house. Vel, Cox's tech guy, takes pity on the family and attempts to intervene with killing the family, forcing Cox to kill him. Jack's daughter Sarah runs out of the house. Another henchman, Pim, chases after her, but Jack kills him by ramming him with Janet's car, then hits an RV that explodes and destroys the car. Cox takes Beth and Andy to the upper floor, but Jack enters the house and engages him in a final showdown. Their fight eventually leads them into the ditch Cox had dug for Jack's family. Cox temporarily gains the upper hand, but Jack impales him with a pickaxe, killing him and saving his family. Jack reconciles with them before they head back home together.

Sir William "Billi" Sedgewick is a veterinarian and resides with Gordon, a goat who behaves like a dog, outside the small town of Catterness, located within the Scottish Highlands. On orders of the Scottish government, beavers have become illegal in Scotland and are to be sent to Norway. During one such removal, a lorry carrying a large group of beavers is involved in an accident, letting loose some beavers. The officers in charge of the operation, McKenzie and McTavish, manage to recapture most beavers, but one escapes. The escapee, Bessie Boo, is subsequently adopted by a family of rabbits. McKenzie, posing as a police officer, mounts an obsessive search for Bessie. Five years pass as McKenzie continues his search for Bessie. Meanwhile, Bessie and the rabbits partake in a tobogganing race. Bessie's adoptive brother, Wee Dave, and their mother fall into a river due to the former's carelessness, leading Bessie to attempt to rescue them. Billi, Gordon, and Billi's grandson, Jake, drive towards Catterness when another rabbit alerts them of the problem. Billi organises a deputation in the town square before noticing McKenzie acting strangely and questioning his identity. During the group's search, Billi finds and resuscitates Bessie's mother and soon locates Bessie and Dave approaching Baron McToff's dam. McToff, despite his protests, accepts Billi's demands to turn off the turbines. The group manages to rescue Dave, only to miss Bessie. Gordon bungee jumps down to catch Bessie but falls into the river. The group retrieves Gordon, but they are distracted by a submarine. Billi gathers a group to save Gordon with a trampoline, but Gordon gets knocked out. Victoria, a pilot duck assisting with the group's rescue, throws Billi a bottle of water, which he uses to revive Gordon. Lady Serena, Billi's daughter, hands Bessie to the submarine's pilot, but McKenzie absconds with Bessie. McKenzie then hijacks Billi's Land Rover, causing Billi to give chase in his Aston Martin and eventually on his skateboard across the Highlands. Ending up outside a military base, McKenzie tries to have Billi arrested before they are both confronted by the police. McKenzie is arrested for his crimes, while Billi promises to reunite Bessie with her family. The townspeople celebrate their victory at the Catterness Inn while Bessie gets returned to her mother. Billi and his consort, Toni Turner, leave the celebration to drive off into the moonlight.

At a sleepy gas station, the pump attendant is attacked by an animal infected by an unknown organism manifesting as large protruding splinters. A young couple, Seth Belzer and Polly Watt, drive for a romantic camping trip in the forests of Oklahoma, but are car-jacked by an escaped convict, Dennis Farell, and his drug-addict girlfriend, Lacey Belisle. The group gets a flat tire when they run over a splinter-infected animal on the road. They find shelter at the now-abandoned gas station. Lacey discovers the horribly-infected pump attendant, writhing in the bathroom. She is attacked and killed by the monster, but her corpse slowly reanimates and becomes a new creature, which attacks the remaining survivors. While fighting her, Seth, Polly and Dennis discover that severed pieces of the infected victims are capable of attacking on their own. Sheriff Terri Frankel arrives and attempts to arrest Dennis, but is ripped in half by Lacey's corpse. The creature takes the top half of the officer's body and bonds with it, becoming a larger creature. The trio hide in the walk-in refrigerator when a piece of the creature's arm attacks them. It is discovered that Dennis has been infected, as his left arm violently twists on its own. Seth and Polly amputate his arm to prevent the infection from spreading. Dennis explains that he had been pricked by a splinter from the dead creature they encountered on the road. Seth discovers that the creatures themselves are a fungus taking control of the corpses they infect and consuming the blood in the body, using the currently zombified host to seek out fresh and new hosts. Because of this, they hunt based on temperature and attack the warmest thing they can find. By lowering his body temperature with bags of ice, Seth sneaks past the creature to the police car, while Polly and Dennis distract it with fireworks. Seth discovers that, without the keys, the car and the police radio inside are useless. His body temperature rises again, forcing Dennis to leave the gas station to lure the creature away from him. The creature enters the gas station, and Dennis and Polly hide in the freezer. The discarded fireworks ignite a trail of flammable liquid, and the gas station catches on fire. Seth retrieves a shotgun from the police car and helps Polly and Dennis escape. Dennis is infected after helping to keep the creature at bay while Seth and Polly escape. He shoots one of the gas pumps with the shotgun, and the creature is engulfed in flames, killing it. Dennis, still infected, gives Seth and Polly a key to a bank account, telling them to give it to the wife of a man he shot, who later died. Dennis shoots directly into the propane tanks, incinerating himself, the station, and any remaining infected corpses. Seth and Polly wander into the distance as other infected creature corpses lie dormant in the woods.